News Update
April 20, 2010

CDC Reports Decrease in E. coli Illnesses;
Beef Industry Keeps Focus on Safety Improvements

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the rate of illness due to E. coli O157 significantly decreased in 2009. The 2009 E. coli illness rate is the lowest since 2004 and meets the Healthy People 2010 goal to cut the number of O157 illnesses in half.

“Anyone involved in the ongoing battle to improve food safety is gratified by the news that illnesses from E. coli O157 have declined,” says James Reagan, chairman of the Beef Industry Food Safety Council (BIFSCo) and senior vice president of research, education and innovation for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), a contractor to the Beef Checkoff Program. “However, E. coli O157 is a tough, adaptable foe and our work is not done.”

Through beef checkoff investments and widespread industry commitment, the beef industry continues to make strides toward reducing the incidence of O157 by implementing multiple interventions throughout the beef production chain.

“Beef industry efforts to reduce the incidence of E. coli O157 started in 1993, and our collective goal continues to be producing the safest beef possible for our consumers,” continues Reagan. “We must remain aggressive in our efforts to keep this and other foodborne pathogens out of our food.

Beef farmers and ranchers have invested more than $28 million of their beef checkoff dollars in safety research since 1993; and together, the beef industry spends more than $350 million annually on safety efforts.

The checkoff founded BIFSCo in 1997 to bring all segments of the industry together around the common goal of improving beef safety. This group shares the philosophy that the best safety solutions result from cooperation among the industry — when food chain partners share the data, knowledge and experiences that contribute to improved safety systems. BIFSCo has led efforts to identify and implement farm-to-fork safety programs, including developing the best practices that serve as a road map for reducing E. coli throughout the beef production chain.

For more information on the industry’s beef safety efforts, visit http://www.BIFSCo.org. For more information about programs funded by your checkoff investment, visit http://www.beefboard.org.
The full CDC report is available here.

— Release by the Cattlemen’s Beef Board.

Scott Downing Benefit Auction Starts May 1

Scott Downing was in a serious ranching accident working cows in Oregon March 29. He was hospitalized at Providence Hospital in Medford, Ore., with a traumatic head injury. Scott and his wife, Tracy, live in Butte Falls, Ore., and they have two boys, Lane and Brandt.

Katie Colyer, LiveAuctions.tv, and friends of the Downing family are planning an online benefit auction to help offset unexpected family expenses the Downing family is facing during Scott’s hospitalization and recovery. The auction will open May 1 and the closeout will start at 6 p.m. PST May 5.

For more information, contact Katie Colyer at katie@hereford.com or 208-599-2962. A link to the sale catalog has been placed at LiveAuctions.tv under the Scott Downing Benefit Auction.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to Testify on 2012 Farm Bill Before House Committee on Agriculture

On April 21, 2010, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will testify on the 2012 Farm Bill before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Agriculture. Vilsack will provide a national perspective on the challenges facing rural America based on his travels to rural communities throughout the country. He will discuss the state of agriculture today, the need for a strong farm safety net, and new approaches to create income opportunities and generate wealth in a stronger, more prosperous rural America for generations to come.

— Release by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Portable Breeding Barn Makes AI Easier for Man and Reduces Stress on Cattle

Beef farmers who practice artificial insemination (AI) will find that a portable breeding barn makes life a lot easier on both man and beast.

“This is especially true if fixed-time AI is practiced and inclement weather hits the day the cows or heifers must be inseminated,” said Eldon Cole, livestock specialist with the University of Missouri (MU) Extension.

A portable breeding barn can simply be backed to a lead up alley gate. When the back door opens the animals to be worked can hardly wait to go into the nice, dark confines of the unit.

“There are no head gates inside to cause them to struggle, just a bar that drops behind them that allows the inseminator to safely do the breeding or pregnancy check,” Cole said.

Research has shown that one secret to higher conception rates is to reduce stress on the female before, during and after insemination. The breeding barn does that.

“Since the barn is a new adventure for the animal and they’ve not experienced any discomfort in the past, they remain calm in the barn,” Cole said. “The technicians appreciate the comfort of having all their necessary AI items under roof and out of the wind. When pregnancy checking with ultrasound, it’s dark enough to easily see the screen.”

The breeding barn is available in one or two-stall designs. If a large number of cows are to be processed and two inseminators used, the two-stall barn allows both to work comfortably.

MU Extension does have several breeding barns in different parts of the state for use by the public. In southwest Missouri, the barn is located at Mount Vernon and producers wanting to use it must reserve it by calling the Lawrence County Extension Center at 417-466-3102.

Producers using the barn are responsible for picking it up and returning it promptly, along with paying a $50 per day use fee.

— Release by MU Extension.

— Compiled by Mathew Elliott, assistant editor, Angus Productions Inc.